Frost seeding into oat stubble

Bill

I have 3 small food plots probably a little less than a 1/4 a each which I plant in oats in the fall. Based on what I have read and watched on the website I am thinking about planting them in the Frigid Forage clover in the spring. What is the procedure I should follow? Can I get away with just killing off and seeding? I do have a small plow that I can pull behind a quad and a cultipacker. Thanks

Depending on what is in the plot now and how tall it is, you may be able to just frost seed the clover without waiting for things to green up first and then killing them. If it is just oats stalks left over from the planting you did last year (and no weeds) you can frost seed into that and expect a good crop of clover. The small seeds will work down through the oats residue to reach the ground with the spring rains. And because the oats are an annual, they won’t spring up to compete with the clover. If you have weeds in there too, you will do best to wait until things green up and get growing well before you then kill the plot and seed the clover. At that point you are probably best off tilling lightly, broadcasting the seed and then packing.

But if you can seed it this winter (no weeds for competition) you don’t have to pack it as the freezing and thawing and spring rains will incorporate the seeds well enough. Finally, add your P & K fertilizer when possible, can be sooner rather than later as it takes time to break down into the soil. Good luck. (2-2-18)